Chapter 16
DARCY
It was Devlin’s voice that brought her back.
She stirred, her mind as numb as her feet, as numb as her fingers. She was so exhausted, and the last few minutes had taken every last ounce of energy and strength from her. There wasn’t a fibre of her body or mind that didn’t ache from the effort of pulling Devlin up from the crevasse.
But she had pulled him up. She had done it.
He’d rolled over and laid beside her, his eyes closed, his mouth open as he sucked in breath after breath. He clutched his bad arm with his good one, his forehead creased with pain. When he opened his eyes, though, it was relief that she saw there. Relief and an intense, moving gratitude.
“Are you okay,” he said, his voice little more than a whisper. “You saved my life.” Darcy shook her head.
“I’m fine. You didn’t need me. You would have got out of there.”
“No, I wouldn’t,” he said.
He groaned as he tried to sit up, and she helped him. He was shaking uncontrollably, his teeth chattering. She was, too, she realised. She looked for her coat but couldn’t see it, wondering if Devlin had accidentally kicked it down into the ravine as he was escaping. She hoped not. Without it, she would freeze.
“What happened?” she asked, getting to her feet, and scanning the nearby snow. Her coat was nowhere to be seen and she tried not to let the panic grip her too hard.
Devlin stared at the sky, the rise and fall of his chest slowing.
“I saw a helicopter,” he said, blowing out a puff of air that floated up into the blueness.
“Oh thank god, really?” she followed his line of sight, but the sky was clear. “Has it come for us? Where is it? Did it land?”
Devlin didn’t look down from the sky. His lips were moving and he looked as though he was trying to summon the helicopter back into view with dark magic. Darcy thought about doing the same and then remembered she wasn’t a witch and it would serve her better to try and find her coat.
“It’s gone, it didn’t see me,” Devlin said, catching Darcy’s eye as she walked in front of him.
“Probably because you were in a crevasse,” she joked without thinking, looking away flushed when she realised what she’d said.
For a moment she thought the joke was horribly timed, because Devlin’s expression was grave, but as she glanced back she saw his lips tugging into a smile as he hummed sceptically. His eyes snagged on hers, twinkling alpine green, and he burst into laughter. Darcy felt her heart soar.
“You got me there,” he said, cocking his head. “Next time, I’ll try to be less inconspicuous.”
“Do you think you’ll manage to be more high profile? Could be tough for you,” she replied. “Maybe I should flag down the helicopter when it comes back.”
And it would come back, wouldn’t it? Darcy felt her ribs ache as the coldness seeped into her clothes. Devlin’s smiling eyes warmed her a little.
“I could write my name in the snow,” Devlin suggested.
“Like the Bat Signal,” Darcy agreed, rubbing her arms. “Surely, for someone like you, it would summon help with a dash of psychological intimidation thrown in for good measure. Why didn’t I think of that yesterday? We could have been back in the resort by now.”
Her teeth were chattering so hard that Darcy was finding it difficult to get the words out and there was no chance her lips could crack a smile. But she felt like smiling. It filled her insides like warm treacle.
“You’re unbelievable,” he said, shaking his head. The corner of his mouth lifted and dimpled his cheek.
“So I’ve been told,” she replied, so cold her brain wasn’t finding the words as quickly as it should have been.
“Your coat,” Devlin said, the humour evaporating from his features as he seemed to notice how low her temperature had dropped.
“You threw it down the ravine,” Darcy chattered. “A . . . a . . . after it saved your life. B . . . b . . . bit mean if you ask me.”
Devlin grimaced, and struggled up to his feet, taking the hand Darcy offered. It took him a while because of his bad arm, but eventually he managed to unzip his own thermal jacket.
“I don’t need it,” she protested, as he shrugged it off. “You’re the one who fell in a big hole. You’re probably in shock.”
But when he held it to her, she could feel the heat radiating from it and she took it gladly, sliding it on. It carried his warmth with it, and his clean, minty scent, and she felt like she could cosy up right here and stay warm for ever. Devlin, on the other hand, looked absolutely freezing — dressed in nothing but two shirts and his suit jacket.
“Maybe we could share it?” Darcy suggested, lifting the coat flaps open and studying the inside lining.
Devlin pulled his hat down, a flop of hair poking out of the front, bothering his eyes. He tucked it away with his good hand and Darcy found herself wanting it to pop back out.
“Kind of you to offer,” he said, his lips twitching, “but I don’t think we’d both fit in it. And it would be hard to walk pressed up against you. You know, because one of us would have to go backwards or something.”
He looked away, flustered. Darcy thought he looked cute when he was embarrassed. It broke the wall around him. Turned him from all-round, ice-frosted sex god to cinnamon-roll boy next door.
Where did that thought come from?
“I didn’t mean at the same time,” she said, pulling her own hat down and wishing she could cover her whole face. “I meant take turns.”
Devlin’s eyes widened and he cleared his throat.
“Right,” he said, looking at the climb ahead of them. “Yeah, that probably makes more sense than . . .”
He didn’t finish his sentence. Instead he wiggled his hand and then tugged at his suit jacket, popping his lips.
“Let me know when you want a go,” Darcy said. “And I’ll make some room.”
She pushed gently against him, brushing his good arm with hers.
“Noted,” he said, nodding once.
It was his tick, Darcy had noticed. Whenever Devlin found something he wasn’t sure about, he’d go all hard-faced at it. Noted and a nod. But she was breaking through, because when he said it to her just then, his cheek dimpled in a smile.
“Come on then,” she told him. “Lead the way. Where are we going?”
“It’s not far,” he said. “They’re already out there looking for us. They might have found the helicopter wreckage, which means they can trace us. There could be a team already at the ranger station waiting for us with warm clothes and some brandy.”
“Then we’d better go meet them,” she said as they set off.
But as they were rounding the lip of the crevasse, Devlin stopped suddenly. He looked up and his expression turned to one of panic.
“My case,” he cried, the whites of his eyes flashing in the snow. “Oh no, did it fall? Please no, please don’t let it have fallen down there.”
“Hey,” Darcy said, placing a hand on his arm. “Hey, it’s okay, it’s back there. It’s fine.”
He took a huge breath of relief, walking over to it and picking it up. For all his strength, and all his toughness, he looked unbearably fragile.
“I know I shouldn’t ask you,” he said. “I know you’ve done more than enough for me already. You’ve saved my life. But could you possibly . . .”
Darcy laughed, taking the case from him.
“It would be my pleasure,” she said.